


Here, there be Monsters

by Amavirra, hpd_lance



Category: Gravity Falls, Over the Garden Wall (Cartoon)
Genre: Deerper, F/F, GarGrunkle, Greg doesn't become a monster sorry, I don't want it to be forever before the dorks fall in love you know, M/M, MerMabel, NOT STANCEST I SWEAR TO GOD, No Sexual Content, Not Beta Read, There will be Stanley and Stanford bonding, There will be blood . . . Again, slow-ish build
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-02
Updated: 2016-07-11
Packaged: 2018-05-11 04:36:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,637
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5614144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amavirra/pseuds/Amavirra, https://archiveofourown.org/users/hpd_lance/pseuds/hpd_lance
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the journal, Stanford Pines had written of a mysterious lake that ties in to monsters somehow.  But the page is smeared and hard to understand through the riddles, warnings, and ink blots.<br/>Dipper, ever the curious, needs to know more about this lake, and he's saved this excursion for the last week of summer vacation - a week before he and Mabel turn fifteen.  They go out in search of this lake, along with a boy named Greg, whom Mabel had been babysitting throughout the summer for some extra cash.</p><p>Although, they weren't expecting to be transformed into Monsters themselves.  And they certainly weren't expecting to meet a Monster boy, lost in the woods.</p><p> </p><p>Maybe, Dipper should have consulted Stanford before making this little mistake.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> I'm still writing The Darkness Brought Me to You, don't worry.  
> Anyway, I thought I would be able to draw you guys a picture of what Wirt was going to look like, but that's not going to happen for various reasons that I'm not going to bore you with.  
> Over the holidays, I had to replace my laptop, so I'm sorry this took like 3-4 weeks to come out, as well as Chapter 10 of TDBMtY.  
> Again, I'm Canadian, so my grammar might be different than yours, but I'm not changing how I spell things lol

The afternoon was absolutely beautiful, with the sun breaking through the trees, pattering the forest path with streams of light, and illuminating the way. Flora swayed and created a gentle rustling noise, which could lull the most erratic creatures into a deep slumber. A chirp here and there reminded one that life was present. All was calm around the lake of the monsters.

.

_Gravity Falls, Oregon_

_J_ _uly 200X_

.

Three beings strolled down the path; a family of Mother, Father, and Son. They were a very happy family.

The son was fifteen years of age. He was a quiet boy. He loved poetry, and was quite good a playing the clarinet. As a younger boy, he played the mandolin, but nobody needed to know that. His attire was fairly formal for a boy his age, wearing a dress shirt and sweater vest atop that, as well as pressed khakis, but it’s what he felt comfortable in. His shoes never matched, though. You could argue that it was a fashion statement, but in reality, he just never noticed.

Walter was his name.

Walter and his loving parents had found themselves hiking in the most untouched parts of the forest in a town called Gravity Falls. It was part of their family vacation they’d been planning for a month or two. His Mother and Father somehow managed to acquire a two weeks’ vacation at the same time, and Gravity Falls was the first stop on their little excursion across the country. A tour in a homely shop called The Mystery Shack started the day off with a couple of laughs, and a meal at the town diner filled their stomachs.

His Mother was an adventurous type of woman, even her desk job would suggest otherwise. She insisted the three of them go for a quiet picnic alone somewhere in the forest. It was quite the spur of the moment type of decision as well. When they started their vacation, they were never planning on a picnic, so all they had was a backpack full of bagged sandwiches and bottled water from a vending machine. Yet, here they were, basking in what nature had to offer. After all, it was the perfect afternoon for such an activity.

Also, her adventurous nature maybe rooted back to the fact the she and his father were not that old in age. His parents were pregnant with Walter at a very young age; nineteen to be exact. It wasn’t meant to happen, rowdy teenagers and what not, but his parents saw it as a blessing. Sometimes, he felt that he’d held them back in life, regardless of the reassuring smiles and loving embraces. So, that’s why, when his Mother asked to go hiking, he was the first to agree to such an outing. His Father rolled his eyes, but laughed as he prepared for the trip, anyway.

His mother deserved a little fun, anyway.

Of course, Walter would rather spend the day inside, nice weather or not. The outdoors wasn’t really his element, ironically enough considering he took great inspiration from nature for his poetry. But he still preferred to lay about his home, where he felt his safest. He had little in the way of friends, but he loved his parents, and always enjoyed his time spent with them.

That didn’t mean Walter didn’t have a tiny note pad stashed in his pocket for spontaneous bursts of poetic innovation, though.

“I think this is a good place to stop, hun” His father said through pants and huffs, bending at the waist and holding his weight on his knees.

His mother grinned wide, “Are you just saying that because you need a break?”

“That is absolutely the reason” He replied, a grin of his own plastered on his face.

“You old man” She accused.

“Thirty-four is not old” His father placed a hand on his chest in mock-offense.

Walter chuckled and shook his head in amusement. Sometimes it seemed like he was the adult of the family, and his parents were the children.

“Well, it’s a little early for lunch,” His mother placed her hands on her hips, “but I guess we can set up, and just hang around for a while”

“Thank God” His father collapsed, and Walter laughed some more.

His parents began unpacking bagged foods and blankets from their knapsacks and placing them around and about on a flat piece of forest land. His mother began to hum as she spread the stereotypical checkered blanket around, and his father, ever the man, already had a sandwich unwrapped and in his mouth, despite it not being lunch time, like his mother had previously stated. She laughed bitterly and asked him if he would help her with the blanket, and he did – with the sandwich still hanging from his mouth, of course. It was quite funny.

But Walter thought, maybe he could go for a walk. If his parents decided they were going to be stationary until and after lunch time, he knew he might get bored. And the only reason they stopped here was because it happened to be an ideal piece of land for picnicking, but it wasn’t much in the way of aesthetics. In a word, it was very green. Or even brown. Okay, that’s two words, but the point remains.

“Mom, can I go for a short walk?” Walter asked.

His mother looked up to him, “Oh, sure. Just don’t go too far, and be careful. And if you’re gonna wander, please, just be back within the hour, at least”

“Okay. Thanks” He smiled, “See you guys in a bit” And then he left them.

Walter walked for about five minutes. He could no longer hear or see his parents, which was perfect for writing. Now all he needed was a muse of some sort.

So, what could he write about? The birds maybe? No, they were too common, and every poet out there writes about the birds.

Seconds later, Walter squeaked as he tripped inelegantly over a rogue tree root. He recovered with little effort, but he still felt a little embarrassed, despite the lack of people there to witness his blunder, which really wasn’t a blunder to be embarrassed of (it wasn’t even a blunder). Now, what happened next was definitely a ‘blunder’. A shoe he was unaware was untied would prove to be his down fall, literally. This time, Walter grunted as his body hit the ground, twigs and leaves crunched under his body.

“Ouch” He said quietly and quite sarcastically. His shoe fell off his foot, and he glared at it like it had done him a personal wrong, which to him, it had. _I hope I didn’t crush my note pad._ Walter winced then as he tried to push himself up with his hands; pebbles and twigs poked and prodded his skin. It was a relief when he was able to sit back on his knees, but that did not keep his hands from twitching in slight pain. He tried his best to stand from that position without using his arms, a little wobbly, but he managed.

Walter brushed off his pant legs with a huff. Then something . . . caught his eye. And he looked up.

Out between the trees, stood a beautiful buck; tall and majestic and still.

Their eyes met, but the buck did not flee. His eyes like beads were locked on him, taking him in, sizing him up. Walter held his breath, remaining quiet. He did not want to come off as a threat, nor did he want to appear as prey. Though, it was silly to think a human could ever be anything but a threat to a deer.

Still, the buck remained. In fact it began to go about its business as if he was not standing there. Walter watched for a while as the deer grazed the surrounding grass. And then it hit him. A beautiful deer in its natural habitat, the sun hitting its golden fur coat, creating a dazzling shimmer, the distant sound of running water and leaves crunching under the hooves of the creature before him. It was perfect. He’d found his inspiration.

So, very quietly, he backed up slowly, allowing his body to naturally find a tree to sit against. When his body bumped the strong trunk of a relatively tall tree, he dropped to the cold, dirt floor and crossed his legs, not once relinquishing his view of the buck. He fished for his small note pad in his pocket, pulling it out with the grace of a lame duck, as the pen he carried for said note pad flipped from his hand and landed in the dirt. Yet still, he tried his best to keep his eyes on the buck, now while he palmed the ground for his escaped pen.

Once he had the pen in his grasp, Walter finally took his gaze from the animal and placed on the opened page of his tiny book. He began to write down a poem.

Walter wrote swiftly, with loopy swells of the pen in a hand-writing that was uniquely his own. He wrote the things he saw, and how they made him feel, as well as the regal presence emanating from the stag. Something akin to a royal being, ruling over the forest, with antlers like a crown. The words were flowing freely. Only now, were his eyes flitting back and forth between the gritty paper under his pen and the buck. With every burst of inspiration, the stanzas grew longer; elongating his time spent looking down, rather than up.

When everything began to slow down, Walter thought about how he should move along and find another being for inspiration. He couldn’t stay away from his parents for too long either. By now, he figured the stag had probably moved on as well, anyway.

Contented, he sighed deeply, closing up his note pad and pocketing it along with the pen.

But as he looked up, he found himself struggling not to scream. The deer was standing there, mere inches away from his face, its neck bent and dipped to assure it looked into Walter’s eyes. His chest tightened, while he was afraid to even blink. When he looked up, the antlers loomed over his scrunched body, acting like a cage between himself and the world above his head.

The stag leaned forward, and his breath hitched. He trembled and shut his eyes reflexively . . . until he felt soft leathery texture of the hart’s nose brushed against his forehead. It was taking in his scent, sniffling through his bangs, causing them to ruffle with every exhale. Walter giggled softly at the ticklish breaths of the stag despite his earlier fear. Although, he still shook at this rather awkward encounter. Then he gasped. The deer had placed its snout flat to his face and pushed gently into to him, like a hug.

The buck kept a constant pressure on his face, and Walter found himself at a loss. He didn’t want to disturb this amazing animal that had taken such a liking to him, but he couldn’t very well just sit there, either.

In the end, he sat for a little while longer, hoping the deer would find a natural stopping point. Even so, it didn’t really look like the deer would be leaving anytime soon, if its closed eyes and steady breathing were any indication. So, he decided to be bold, and touch the stag. He reached up, his fingers trembling, and he touched the velvety fur on the buck’s neck. It didn’t move. So he began to stroke it slowly, petting down until he reached the strong muscles of the chest. There was a grunt, which surprised him greatly because he wasn’t even aware a deer _could_ grunt.

Walter bit his lip. He had to leave, and this deer wasn’t giving him much of a choice. With both hands placed firmly on the buck’s chest, he pushed with all his might, trying to get the animal to stumble back. What he hadn’t been expecting was for it to push back against him, fighting his advances.

So, a last ditch effort; say something.

“M-Move” He said rather loudly.

The buck remained still.

“Are you seriously not afraid?” The stag leaned its neck away, his ears rotating towards Walter’s voice.

Walter frowned, “. . . I have to go . . .” He whispered.

The deer whined, or what he thought sounded like a whine, and backed away only slightly, as if it understood him as he spoke. He was astounded, and couldn’t help but marvel at this animal. It was intelligent and seemed to find something within him to cling to. Walter found himself feeling a sudden bout of loss, like to leave this buck, would mean he was going to lose a very important friend.

But he guessed it was easy to feel this way about wild animals, where it was horribly rare for anything to approach you, especially if you had nothing to offer.

So, as he stood, he tried to leave without looking into those sweet beady eyes. Walter kept his head down the entire time, and only lifted it when he’d turned away.

But he couldn’t help . . . one last look.

Walter sighed deeply, and trailed his eyes from the buck’s hooves all the way to its eyes. He gasped audibly at the ember irises staring into his own, like they were piercing his soul. He was just . . . so sure they were not that beautiful before.

“W-wait . . .” Walter mouthed as he reached out to the stag’s face. It blinked and he twitched when he noticed its eyes had changed again. The eyes had returned to a darker brown colour and the pupils were rectangular slits . . . he didn’t know deer had rectangular pupils.

 _I must be losing my mind . . ._ he thought, “’Kay, well . . . bye”

Not that he thought it would make a difference, but as he turned to walk away, he gave a small wave.

Walter couldn’t help but smile, though. He could hear that the stag had decided to start following him during his little trek back to his parents. Branches and twigs snapped under his weight, and behind him, the stag maneuvered around the trail of broken wood he was leaving behind. It was such an amazing feeling, to gain the trust of such a creature. He wondered if it would follow him all the way.

_**Chop the wood to light the fire!** _

A faint echo slithered through the forest and caught his attention. He stopped walking, and so did the buck. The wistful voice penetrated his thoughts, and he suddenly felt cold, but not uncomfortably so.

Walter no longer felt the need to return to his parents; he just didn’t want to. He felt calm here.

**_Tis it much that I require!_ **

Where was that voice coming from? Never had he heard something so enticing in his entire life.

It sounded very far away from his current position, but it carried so well through the winding paths created by trees and nature. It didn’t feel as if he were standing alone in a forest crowded with nothing but trees. The song made everything seem like life was worth living, like life had a meaning; like the life he’d been living was wrong.

His parents forgotten, Walter changed his course, and headed further away from his family.

The buck stopped following.

**_When the fog of life surrounds you_ **

The path grew smoother, leveling out and brightening as he walked. The colours all around seemed to change, becoming lighter and more pleasing to the eye, like pastels. The trees parted, as Walter stepped into a wide and sunny glen. Grass as tall as his thighs swayed in the gentle breeze that had manifested out of nowhere, resembling waves on the ocean.

The new amount of sunlight assaulted his sight, causing him to squint and cringe. Walter blocked the light with his hand to his forehead, blinking away the burn in his eyes. The sky was in full view above him, as blue as ever, and not a cloud to be seen. He looked out into the distance, and struggled to see and hear at the same time; how peculiar. Nonetheless, Walter began to step forward through the ‘forest’ of tall grass.

The closer he got to the source of the song, the lighter he felt. He felt something soaring in his chest, like the sky was inside of him.

**_When you think you’ve lost your way!_ **

Oh, how he’d never felt so contented before.

The song became louder, and louder, filling his head with only music.

And then he saw it. A beautiful white being in a flowing garment, that billowed with the wind. It was unreal, like an angel from a fairy tale. That wonderful music was emanating from this creature. What was something so beautiful doing all the way out here in the forest? What did it matter? It seemed to be beckoning him with a wonderful song and a sweet smile.

It was like this creature wanted to help him, to bring him a better life.

But . . . did he need a better life?

He wasn’t sure anymore.

**_Come with me inside the forest_ **

The being reached out with both arms and smiled warmly at Walter. He could almost feel it, just a little more . . .

**_Come with me and join the play!_ **

“WALTER!”

Everything came crashing back down all at once.

The dream shattered away.

Walter felt his chest tighten, and the horribly loud sound of rushing water filled his ears. He felt sick to his stomach. He was no longer in the safe haven of the glen, and everything was much darker, much duller than they were moment ago.

“Walter, what are you doing out there?!” A voice he barely recognised screeched in fright.

Walter was suddenly made aware of what was happening beneath him. He looked down quickly, and was shocked to find himself standing on the thin body of a fallen tree; a tree that was draped precariously across a roaring river, speeding past his feet with no care. Far off to his right, he could hear the sound of a merciless water fall. How had he gotten there? Where was the glen?! How was it possible for someone to cross a river without even realising it?

Then he remembered that he had been following a beautiful voice. A voice that belonged to a beautiful being that stood out in front of him.

So, he looked up, and almost screamed when he realised a magical being no longer stood there, but a Beast. An ebony creature stood still, with arms stretched out like tree limbs reaching towards his neck. Its twig like fingers a hair’s breath away from touching his skin. Antlers made of branches towered on its head, and its eyes . . . they bored into his soul.

**_Walter . . . come this way . . ._ **

And then the monster disappeared as quickly as a shooting star in a burst of black dust, flying away with the harsh winds.

An illusion

Walter was back in the real world.

“Walter!” A new voice, “Walter, stay there I’ll come get you”

Walter dared to turn around, flinching as the tree wobbled under his weight. Tears began to run down his cheeks when he saw his father getting on the base of the tree, and his own mother sobbing on the embankment.

He wanted to reach out to his father, but every movement caused the tree to shake and sway. His father shuffled unbearably slowly down the log, with his arms out for balance. Walter let out a choked sob; the tree was cracking, and his father didn’t seem to notice!

Walter was frozen with fear, and even more so when he came to the conclusion that he and his father would not survive. They would fall in, surely. Any change in the current condition of the tree, and they would both go in. It wouldn’t be a bad thing if the river hadn’t been a raging ticket to inevitable death, leading first to a dreadful plunge over the edge. He cursed the river solemnly for being so cruel.

In times like these, he didn’t feel like the adult anymore.

He was the scared little child.

And the other side of the river? Would there be a chance, slim or not, that he could maybe make a leap of faith, and somehow he and his father could survive? Walter turned his head. The other bank was too far to jump to, and the tree only thinned out from there. It would never be able to hold his body long enough. His face fell again.

Suddenly, there was a loud **‘crack’** , earning frightened gasps from Walter and his parents. There was no way his father didn’t notice it this time.

His father’s eyes were wild now, “Walter –”

“Dad, just turn back, please!” Walter sobbed.

He could never imagine that would be the last thing he would ever say to either of his parents.

One last crack echoed horrifyingly, and he felt the last bit of calm Walter had left leave his body. He fell. And so did his father. He heard his mother’s hysterical scream. But he didn’t scream. He couldn’t scream.

The water was so cold.

. . . So cold . . .

.

_Gravity Falls, Oregon_

_July 200X_

.

A mother was left alone in the forest, sobbing for her husband whom was killed violently by nature’s unforgiving embrace, and her son, whom nobody has seen since that day. Out by the lake of the monsters.


	2. Chapter One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't understand how anybody can write good first chapters! HOW DO YOU DO IT!?  
> It was great at the beginning, but it just got worse and worse as I wrote. Like, you know that feeling when you just want to get to the good stuff, so your writing starts to suffer for it? Yeah . . .

.

_Gravity Falls, Oregon_

_August, 201X_

.

“MabelMabelMabel”

“Greg, You’re so fast!”

Dipper sat in the old armchair that smelled like death, with his legs tucked under his butt, as he tried his best to focus on his Great Uncle Ford’s journal. It was pretty difficult with your crazy sister running around barefoot through the living room, chasing a boy with the energy of a cheetah and eyes like an owl. Couldn’t they do that outside? Well, he could just go outside himself, but why should he give up the comfort of the armchair, with no lumbar support and broken springs, that smelled . . . oh.

“Hey, guys, if you need me, I’ll be on the back porch” Dipper called over the laughter of the boy.

Without stopping the chase, Mabel yelled back, “We probably won’t need you, but thanks for letting us know!”

 _Yeah, you won’t need me_ , Dipper shook his head. He winced when he stepped off the chair and he felt the pins and needles in his feet. He really should have let the blood flow back into them before attempting to use them, but you know; lesson learned.

Once outside, the porch was already seeming like a better choice compared to the dinosaur chair in the living room. Being Oregon, the outdoors wasn’t particularly hot, but it wasn’t cold either, perfect for the cut-offs he was wearing, maybe to hot for the hoodie, though. Also, it smelled like nature, rather than sweaty old man mixed with dirt and decay, which was a huge relief to his olfactory senses. Dipper took a huge breath through the nose, and sat down on the edge of the porch on the exhale. He adjusted his pine tree hat, and kicked off his shoes for added measure. When he was finally comfortable, or as much as one could be one wooden panels, he re-opened the journal.

Inside the shack, Dipper had been trying to read about something he had never seen before in the journals, like he’d skipped over this specific page literally every time he opened the book. Although, truth be told, the page had been stuck to the page next to it from thirty-year-old ink blots, so he really couldn’t blame himself for missing this page over and over. And he accidentally ripped it a little when he tried to pull them apart, but whatever.

It was worth it though, for when the pages came apart, Dipper felt excitement bubbling up inside him.

The Lake of Monsters

Yes, Gravity Falls was already filled with creatures you could only imagine, or see in your wildest dreams, but this was different. Great Uncle Ford had taken the liberty to write ‘STAY AWAY FROM THE LAKE’ in huge letters under the sketch of said lake, and of course, this only fueled his interest more. When he was twelve, Dipper may have heeded this warning, but he was fourteen now, going on fifteen in just six short days. Plus, a warning like that was just begging to be disregarded in favour of adventure and discovery.

But right now, it would probably be favourable to skim through what was written before jumping head first into this. So, he began to read.

“I’ve been monitoring the wildlife surrounding the lake for two weeks now, since the incident with the four eyed squirrel,” _I now have reason to believe the water is altering the genetic makeup of anything it comes in contact with it – the water does not need to be consumed for the transition to occur. . ._ After that the page became harder and harder to read. Stanford’s finger prints in pen ink were smeared across many of the phrases, and spilled ink literally erased whole chunks of written information in a blackish void. “H-humans are not affected – No, wait, they are . . . Jeez, Great Uncle Ford, I can barely read this!” _Those brave enough to take the plunge . . ._ What? “I-I don’t understand”

There was something else, too. The page did not specify anything regarding this magical body of water. Gravity Falls had a lake, and people swim in it’s depths, and eat the fish from said lake all the time. They couldn’t be the same lake, or could it? The memories of he and his sister filming the monster island that rose from the murky water in his amateurish episode of ‘Dipper’s Guide to the Unexplained’. That thing was horrifying! But even with a ‘monster’ in the lake they all knew best, this lake couldn’t be the same one in the journal, so the only conclusion would be that somewhere in the forest, there was another, secret, lake.

Then he remembered one last thing. Invisible ink; Great Uncle Ford always wrote something extra in ink that could only be read with a black light.

Dipper pulled out a tiny pocket sized black light out from his hoodie pocket. It was a good investment, because he realised the black light he used to carry around was almost as long as his forearm, and it was just plain stupid, to be honest. The light he had now was in the shape of a pencil, and worked like a laser-pen. Much more convenient, if you asked him.

He switched on the light, and began scanning the page. Seconds later, his eyes widened in joy and disappointment at the same time. Bright blue letters emerged as he passed over them, and he found, not extra information, but the coordinates to the lake itself!

If he wanted to know more, he would either have to ask his Uncle, or experience it for himself . . .

Suddenly, the rickety screen door swung open, and out came Greg, the six-year-old boy Mabel had been babysitting all summer, with Mabel right behind him. Greg leapt off the porch and began running around with his arms out like a plane, while Mabel dropped down beside him, laughing as she watched her ‘sweetie’ run around like a maniac.

Mabel leaned all her body weight onto him, much to his chagrin, “So what have you been reading?” She peered over his shoulder and Dipper noticed her face slowly change from interested to confused, “I can’t read any of that . . .”

“I know” Dipper sighed, “but from what I can read, this looks –”

“Like something we should do? Like right now?” Mabel exclaimed as she swung her head around, looking directly into his eyes.

 _Well, it’s nice to see she’s as excited as I am._ “But, what do we do with Greg?”

“What about me?” Greg asked, popping up out of nowhere, scaring Dipper, but making Mabel laugh. She was more used to his shenanigans than he was, it was evident.

Mabel smiled bright, “We’re gonna go on an adventure, sweetie”

“YAY!” Greg, now giddy, was jumping around the yard, whooping and singing something about Potatoes and syrup? It was so nice to see him so happy, but there were plenty of things nagging in the back of Dipper’s head. Greg didn't know anything about the supernatural happenings in town, and it wouldn't be fair to just throw him in without preparation, he was so young. Plus, he was Mabel’s responsibility and she could make the call when his parents weren't around, but she was just the babysitter! They couldn't put someone else’s child in danger like that!

“Mabel, we can’t take him . . .”

“Sure we can” Mabel brushed him off.

“M-Mabel” Dipper sputtered, “We really can’t. We can just go later today, when his mom comes to pick him up”

“But Jennifer is working the late shift today, we wouldn’t be able to leave until after eight, and you know Grunkle Stan and Grunkle Ford aren’t going to let us do that. PLUS, look at him,” She whined as she pointed at Greg, who was now dancing next to Gompers, whom didn’t seem to give two shits, “Greg thinks he’s going now, we can’t _not_ take him!”

“That wasn’t my fault” Dipper shook his head at her, his nose crunched in annoyance.

Mabel’s response to that was to stick her tongue out at him, to which Dipper just rolled his eyes sarcastically in hopes of pissing her off even more. It worked, because she was glaring daggers at him, her lips sucked into her mouth.

“We’re taking him!” She whisper-yelled, then got up without letting him say anything more on the subject. Mabel stomped away and picked Greg up and spun him around in her arms, thoroughly ignoring him now.

 _Fine_ , Dipper thought bitterly, “I’ll go pack some supplies”

“No rush” Mabel sing-songed.

 _You are the biggest pain in my ass._ With a sigh, Dipper slipped his shoes back on and closed up the journal so he could get up from the porch.

Dipper threw the door open with a flick of his wrist, but he forgot the old door did not have a spring and could not pull back on its own. It kept swinging and slammed into the outside wall of the shack. He winced at the sound and turned to his sister and Greg, but they didn’t seem to notice, thankfully. Keeping to himself, Dipper tromped into the doorway, making sure to close the door manually, rather than letting it go on its own, and right up the stairs to look for a backpack.

When at the top of the stairs, Dipper looked over to door that separated him from his and Mabel’s room with contempt. He knew what was on the other side. But it had to be done, so he waddled over to the door, taking his sweet time to prolong the inevitable. The door opened with a tiny push, and Dipper sighed. The bedroom was a mess, and Dipper had trouble maneuvering through the path made from papers and clothing on the floor. He had to kick away items a few times, but he just needed to get to his bed, where his backpack lay underneath. Every few steps, he’d step on something oddly shaped, always hoping it wasn’t something fragile, and often times would find thumb tacks embedded into the soles of his shoes, but as long as they weren’t directly stabbing his feet, he didn’t care.

Finally, he reached the bed. Bending at the waist, he peered under the bed, and clawed at the floor until his hand made contact with his bag. Would have been easier to get down on his knees, but he was just . . . so lazy. That didn’t matter know anyway, he had the bag, and he could leave now.

Only he stopped himself, looking around at the mess. It always got like this near the end of the summer, and it was just a painful reminder that the fun was coming to an end. Items would be pulled from the luggage, and never put away. But could you blame them? Putting their stuff away as they used it made everything feel superficial; like they weren’t actually living here with their Uncles in Gravity Falls.

But summer was over, and this mess wouldn’t be staying for very long . . .

Dipper sighed again, then looked down at the bag in his hands, kneading the material and letting out a forlorn “Alright”

Once he did, his descent back down those stairs was just a little slower. At the bottom, Dipper walked on through to the kitchen. He tossed the bag up onto the table and stuffed the journal inside, but not before inputting the coordinates to the lake into his cellphone G.P.S. and shoving a few water bottles inside, as well. Then he started to make some generic sandwiches, trying to forget his earlier melancholic musings. They had to enjoy what time they had left, not grieve over what was to come.

_Heh, and to think . . . that was Mabel a couple of years ago. What happened to me?_

He didn’t hear someone coming up behind him.

“Whatcha up to, kid?” Stanley grumbled, while stretching out his shoulders. No doubt from standing around giving tours to unsuspecting folk.

 _Oh, shoot, now I’ll have to explain where we’re going to Grunkle Stan._ “Uh, Mabel, Greg and I are going to t-the lake” _Keep your lies simple._ Dipper continued to make the sandwiches awkwardly, hoping Stanley wouldn’t ask for any details. Although, he calmed himself down when he remembered this was the same man that would let them do whatever they wanted, irresponsible or not, under the reasoning that he was just ‘the uncle’.

_Why do we even keep things from him, again?_

“Going to hunt monsters, eh?” Stanley raised a brow, “Don’t even try to deny it, kid”

“Uh, yeah! Sure” Dipper laughed, still not looking at his uncle.

Stanley guffawed, dropping his hand on Dipper’s shoulder, “Listen, if you catch anything, bring it back here. The attractions are getting stale and I bet I could make my face on anything you could find out there!”

“Will do” _Probably not._

They stood there awkwardly for a moment or two, until Dipper turned around with his mouth shut in a tight line. He heard Stan sigh behind him, but he decided to keep going.

Dipper hated how weird it felt to be around his Grunkle. Things had become awkward, and it only got worse as he grew older. He wondered, sometimes, if that was the reason they didn’t get along as well as Stan and Mabel. Sure, he’d never been as close as Mabel was to him, but liked to think during their first summer visit, bonding with Stan was easier and more fun for the both of them.

 _Can we be closer? Like, at all? Would you like me more if I was still twelve?_ Dipper sighed himself, and continued on.

When he stepped back outside, he found Mabel helping Greg into the back seat of the golf cart around the back of the shack. The ripped canopy for the cart draped into her hair, and she brushed it away with her hand while she bounced her hips back and forth and hummed along to whatever ditty Greg was singing loudly, now. Dipper sauntered up to the cart and got into the driver’s seat silently, tossing the back pack into the passenger’s seat, keeping Mabel from sitting there.

“Hey!” She exclaimed when she noticed.

“Children must sit in the back” Dipper smirked, “That’s the law”

“Oh. Oh, you’re funny, Dipdop. Ahaha HA”

 _Ooh, the sarcasm was strong with that one._ Regardless, Mabel got in the back and buckled in beside Greg. He really hoped she would take that opportunity to inform the boy of the odd goings on in their little town. He really didn’t want the supernatural to smack Greg in the face like a brick wall. Could you imagine handing a traumatised six-year-old boy back to his mother and being like ‘Sorry I scarred your kid for life, lol’?

They’d dragged a lot of people into their crap, and he wasn’t really into adding Greg to the list. He loved Greg like a little brother, even if he’s only known him since Mabel started babysitting him at the start of the summer. He was really going to miss him when they left . . .

Brought back from his thoughts, Dipper visually deflated in relief when Mabel asked, “So, Greg, do you like monsters?”

“What kind of monsters?” Greg asked eagerly, swinging his legs that didn’t quite reach the floor mats back and forth.

“Oh, you know, cool monsters . . . creepy monsters” She brought her hands up to her face and crunched all her fingers to look like claws, and Greg giggle at her antics, “Pretty monsters, silly monsters” Then she tickled him, and he laughed even louder.

The engine started, and Dipper smiled into the rear view mirror, as he watched his sister make new hand gestures for every monster she named off. Greg was enthralled, and starred at her in interest, nodding his head every once in a while. Mabel went on and on, not really being specific about the monster types, before she finished off calmly with, “What would you say if me and Dipper told you that all these monsters are real?”

Both he and his sister laughed as Greg gasped softly, “Dipper, is that true?!”

“Absolutely” Dipper said simply, finally pulling the cart out of its parking spot and leaving the property, keeping an eye on his cellphone’s G.P.S. His phone told him to head to the West of the shack, which they rarely traveled because there wasn’t really anything out there. He was slightly concerned to travel down in the parts of the forest he wasn’t familiar with, but it also totally made sense as to why they’d never come across this lake before, and his curiosity outweighed his worries.

“Will I see a magic flying tiger! I’ve always wanted to see one of those!”

“Mmm, maybe not that one, sweetie” She informed him, puling his little body into her side.

“Aww, beans” Greg shrunk.

“Ah, but, there will be things, like Gnomes . . .”

“And Fairies!” Mabel yelled excitedly.

“A-and Gremloblins” _Um, maybe I should have kept that one to myself_. Thankfully, Greg didn’t catch on to the amalgamation-like monster name, and instead grew more and more excited.

“How about Unicorns?”

“Oh, _blech_. They’re the worst!” Mabel gabbed, flicking her hand in disgust, “They were so mean to me and my friends! This one Unicorn, Celestabellabethabelle, told me I wasn’t pure of heart”

Greg gasped, “No, You!?”

“I know, right!?”

Laughably, Greg, with his mouth agape, was throwing his head back and forth between Mabel and Dipper every time they tacked on the many creatures roaming Gravity Falls.

.

After about a ten-minute drive, they were only about two thirds the way to the lake.

The drivable path died away ages ago, leaving a humpity-bumpity mess of forest floor Dipper had to try to drive the golf cart with tiny wheels over. It was horrible, like getting a massage from a man with forks for hands, or walking across a war zone of scattered Legos. Greg thought it was a millions laughs; oh, what fun. Dipper and Mabel were cursing their sore bottoms. Mabel was laughing, however, for Greg’s sake, but the face she made towards Dipper in the rear view mirror was one he knew he was wearing on his own mug, as well.

Then, coming up in front of them was a dead end, or at least, a dead end for the cart. “Crap”

“What is it?” Mabel asked over Greg’s mirth.

Rather than answering immediately, Dipper had to focus on slowing the cart, or face a shit-ton of fallen trees and debris head on with a golf cart that essentially had the horse power of a speeding bullet . . . without outer protection. “We have to walk from here”

Dryly, Mabel responded, “Really?”

This time he didn’t answer at all, telling Mabel he was serious by turning off the engine and hoping out, slipping the back pack onto his, well, back. Undeterred, Greg unbuckled himself and hopped out, ready to follow Dipper. He chuckled in appreciation, and stood with his chest puffed out proudly.

“Ready when you are, Dip-Dop” Greg smiled.

All the air rushed out of him in an amused sigh. “Did you tell him to call me that?” he starred at Mabel.

Mabel was only just slipping out of the cart, “Maybe”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm adding a new thing to this story; Dipper and Stan bonding. When I first got into Gravity falls, the first Fanfic I read was about Dipper and Stan bonding and it's one of my favourite things!  
> So basically this story is;  
> Stan/Ford Bonding  
> Stan/Dipper Bonding  
> Hella Pinescone  
> Wirt/Greg Bonding  
> Minor Mabifica
> 
> Anyway, it was poorly written in this chapter, and I'll explain this theme in later chapters a little better.
> 
> Also I decided to write a very short Mabifica story set in the universe of my other story The Darkness Brought Me to You, because their relationship is already established in that story, and I wanted to write about how they fell in love (With super minor Pinescone, like Dipper talks about his crush, and Mabel gives him sisterly advice, but other wise it's all about the girls) 
> 
> Wirt will either show up in the next chapter, or make a tiny appearance and show up in the chapter after that.


	3. Chapter 2; Kids React To: Hearing Strange Noises in the Woods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alternately titled: "I Should Probably Change The Name of This Chapter So I Don't Get Sued, But Screw the Police and Screw Copyrights by Fall Out Boy"

The trek through the woods could have gone better. It also could have gone worse, and Dipper was thankful it hadn't. (He'd come _this close_ to sending Mabel and Greg back to the Shack, after Mabel nearly stepped on a rattlesnake.) He kept hearing shuffling noises off to his left, but when he paused to listen, ot tried to look, all he saw and heard were trees, trees, and more trees.

_Snap!_

Dipper swiveled his head around to look at Mabel, a silent question in his eyes, _Did you hear that?_

His twin simply shrugged, a confused look that said, _Wasn't me!_ stuck on her face. She looked down at Greg, who was looking at something off in the distance, his brow furrowed and lips pursed. "Mabel, Dipper? Are there people monsters in Gravity Falls?"

\-------------------------

Dipper heard a small gasp, then spun to look at where Greg was looking. The toe of a shoe poked out from behind a nearby tree. "Hello?" Dipper called, and the shoe moved back behind the tree.

"It's not nice to follow people without telling them!" Greg stated, not yelling, but louder than normal speaking level. "And it's _especially_ not nice to follow people when they don't even know your name!"

A branch snapped, and Greg ran up to the tree, checked behind it, and frowned. "There's no one here!" He called to Dipper, who furrowed his brow and came to check it out. Sure enough, no one was there.

_**Chop the wood to light the fire!** _

It was barely a whisper, but Dipper heard it. He frowned, "Mabel, stay here, I'm going to check this out. If I'm not back in five minutes, run." Dipper didn't wait for a response before taking off into the woods.

\--------------------------------

A young man stands near a body of water. He stares out over the rippling surface of the lake, glistening ominously in the light. Any other person might have found it eerily beautiful, but this boy knew better. He knew what sort of monsters lived in and around this lake. He knew that this lake held the most powerful, terrifying, and downright evil monster he had ever seen. He shuddered. If his suspiscions were correct, and the Beast really was coming back. . . God help the residents of Gravity Falls.

\------------------------------------

Dipper didn't know which way he was headed. The singing had stopped, and he was looking out over a lake.

_You have reached your destination._ His phone says from his pocket, and he nearly jumps out of his skin. He pulls the phone out of his pocket, and gulps when he realizes that he has _absolutely no clue where he left Mabel and Greg._

"What's that?" A voice asks from over his shoulder, and Dipper whips around to find the face of the speaker. A tall boy, probably fifteen, tops, stands behind him.

"Who are you?" Dipper asks, pocketing his phone, "Are you the one who was following us earlier?"

The boy hesitates, then nods slowly, "Its just... it's been a while since I've seen another human, I- I don't usually get visitors."

Dipper is about to ask him to elaborate, ask him why he lives near this lake, or any number of questions, but before he can-- _Double bubble, disco queen, headed to the guillotine--_ He answers his phone, and he feels his cheeks heating up, because wow he hadn't realized that his phone wasn't on silent.

" _Dipper! Where are you?_ "

"I'm at the lake, Mabel, hey, take Greg back, okay? I think I should check this out on my own. Maybe take him to see the gnomes or something."

" _No, Dipper, we said we'd show him the lake! How far are you-- no, wait, hold on I'll just use the GPS to-- Greg!_ " The line goes dead, and Dipper gets a feeling that whatever happened on the other end wasn't something good.

"So that's a phone? Wow, technology sure is something. Your ringtone was cool, I think. Was that Fall Out Boy?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh god ok so I hope I didn't disappoint you all with this, the newest chapter, and I really tried to make it longer than it was originally (I had like, five paragraphs written, and now theres like... idk, somewhere in the teens.) and so, thus begins my reign as dictator of this story/universe.
> 
> me, a lame nerd, incorporating Fall Out Boy and P!ATD references in my writing because I love those bands, so much,
> 
> \--John (Kaki_Idk)


	4. an update promise (love, John)

OKAY! John here, hi, I just came to tell you that I am SOOOOOOOO sorry this hasn't updated. I have been way distracted, and I am super sorry about that. but don't worry! I'm working on the next chapter right now. in the meantime, tell me in the comments if you have Pokemon Go, what team you're on, and your favorite pokemon. I love pokemon. (I have it, I'm on team Mystic which I chose bc BLUE, and my fav pokemon is my eevee aaa) anyway.

this is, as the chapter title says, an update promise. I will DEFINITELY have the next chapter out by Saturday, July 16th, and the one after that will HOPEFULLY be out by July 23rd (my birthday), and then there will be a mini-hiatus because I've got band camp (I JUST GOT AN IDEA FOR ANOTHER FIC OMG) and then HOPEFULLY I will have more chapters out after that aaaa.

again. I am so sorry for not updating sooner

**Author's Note:**

> Walter is Wirt, if anybody was confused by that.


End file.
